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Coronavirus In Ohio: Prisons Director Tests Positive For COVID-19

Marion Correctional Institution is the largest hotspot of coronavirus cases in the country.
Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections

The director of Ohio's prison system has announced that she has tested positive for the coronavirus.

Annette Chambers-Smith is head of the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction, which oversees Ohio's 46,000 inmates. She told staff that she received the results Monday after being tested Friday because she wasn't feeling well.

The agency says the director is working from home and has mild symptoms. Chambers-Smith has not been inside a prison since June 26 and hasn't been in the office since July 21.

Chambers-Smith led the agency through two massive COVID-19 outbreaks at prisons in Marion and Orient. More than 5,000 inmates have tested positive to date, with nearly 90 inmate deaths.